Discussion CardsWhat is important about the title?

What are the conflicts in "The Lady of Shalott"? What types of conflict (physical, moral, intellectual, or emotional) do you see in this poem?

How does Lordy Tennyson reveal character in "The Lady of Shalott"?

What are some themes in the poem? How do they relate to the development of the poem and characters?

What are some symbols in "The Lady of Shalott"?

Is the Lady consistent in her actions? Is she a fully developed character? How? Why?

What is the central/primary purpose of the poem? Is the purpose important or meaningful?

How essential is the setting to the poem? Could the poem have taken place anywhere else?

What is the role of women in the poem?

What effect do the poem's rhyme scheme, metre, and presentation of imagery have on the themes it pursues? How do

these elements help move the plot forward?

‘The Lady of Shalott’

Independent Study

Answer the following questions as fully as possible- remember top mgrade answers will demonstrate:

AO3

Exploration and analysis of key language features and structural devices.

Perceptive evaluation of how author’s techniques shape meanings.

AO4

Perceptive consideration of different interpretations of the text with evaluation of their strengths and weaknesses.

Clear and detailed evidence of confident personal response with excellent selection of supportive references.

Questions

1. This poem employs metaphors of weaving, singing, and reflection (the "mirror" and "shadows") -- what significance do those metaphors have in establishing the poem's meaning?

2. How does the poem's descriptive quality change when Sir Lancelot enters the scene? How is his appearance connected with what the Lady has called a "curse"? Why does the sight of Lancelot induce her to leave her loom and "look down to Camelot" (110)?

3. How do the Lady's death and the villagers' perceptions of her raise the issue of art's relation to life? What statement, if any, do you think the poem as a whole makes about that relation? Why, for example, must the Lady die "singing in her song" (152) -- why is it impossible that she should arrive safely at her destination?

4. Scholars have suggested that this poem, like many of the versions of the Arthurian legends, is more than another retelling of the same old story. The Lady represents the artist, high above ordinary life, practicing her art and observing life but never mixing in it directly. When she is drawn into real life, her art is destroyed and she dies. Relate this reading of the story to other possible interpretations of the story.